Sorting device



July 15, 1930. SCHOONENBERG Er AL 1,770,810

SORTING DEVI CE Filed Oct. 25, 1926 2 Shuts-Sheet 1 f7) U8 nfors I? schoonenberg and Jc/flardenerg SORTING DEVICE Filed Oct. 25, 1926 2 Shuts-Sheet 2 Patented July 15, 1930 .um'ran I STATES PATENT -o1'-F1c1srmcnns scnoommnnne AND arm menus nannmniw, on nmnnovmr, Narnia-a- LANDS, nssmnons no N. v. ramrrs' enomnurnnmnnmxnn, or 'EINDHOVEN,

NETHERLANDS son'rnm DEV-ICE Application filed October 25,1928, Serial no. 144,125, mm Netherlands Fovember as, 1925;

This invention relates to a device for sortin articles of different weight.

known apparatus for .arrangin articles in classes according .to their weig t, these articles are carriedby a conveying. device over different balances which are adjusted to respond to a definite weight and which deflect when loaded with such a weight, the

articles being placed in definite groups by this movement. According to the more or less fine sorting or to the more or less different weights of the articles to be sorted, it is necessary in that case to arrange side by side a greater or less number of balances so that these devices take up considerable room and are not easily adapted to a changing use.

The device according to the invention com- .prises a weighing device and a mechanism for adjusting a sorting device accordingv to the different deflections of the weighing device.

This aflords the advantage that a single balance is suflicient, a rapid adaptation to difierent sortin s being ensured by a re-adjustment of the alance. The sortin device may be mounted near the weighing evice so that the articles after being weighed are directly conveyed into different compartments of the sorting device.

According to the invention the device comprises a conveyor for the articles, a weighing device and a number of sorting units operatively arranged along the pathof said 0011- veyor, a contact member provided on such deflection thereof, a number of contacts each corresponding with one of said units, and means for energizing the'sorting units according to the co-operation of said member with said contacts.

The Wei hing device may operate according to di erent principles; and in general,

the device will be provided with a scale or- 0 ing drawings'in which:

weighing device and adapted to follow the F1gure 2 is a side-view of the machine of -Fi e 1,

igure 3 is a detailof the contact mechamsm,

gigure ,4; is'a plan of the weighing device, an

Fi re 5 is a diagrammatic ing te electrical circuits. v

The device consists of three arts viz, a weighing device 1, a conveying device 2 and a device 3 (Figure 2) for sup lying the glass tubes that have to be weighed? The conveying device consists of chains 4, running on sprocket gears 5 and 6 which are adapted torotate on shafts 8 and 7 respectively and which are driven'by means of a sprocket gear 23 and a chain 80. The chains 4 are providedwith carriers 9 and 10 which are secured to the chains so as to be pivoted on points 24 and 32 respectively and to which are secured weights 19 and 46,respectively,for causing the said carriers to hang constantly in a defimte position so that when a glass tube comes to lie in the fork of the carrier, the latter is prevented from being tipped over by the weight of the tube. The carriers serve to supply glass tubes 12, arranged on guides 11, one by one to a weighing device and to remove said, glass tubes, after they have been weighed, from this device and to carry them to a sorting device.

In order to isolate the glass tubes one by one, the guides 11 are provided with a device view illustratwhereby each time one tube is isolated from Figure 1 is a'front, view ofthe machine in the others the other tubes are permitted to advance to present another tube for removal. For this purpose two stops 13 and 14 are mounted in a housing 14' so as to be vertically movable, said housin being secured to the guides 11. At their ower ends these stops bear on two levers 15 and 16 respectively which are actuated by cams 17 and 18 mounted on the shaft 7 The stops 13 and 14 are alternately raised and lowered in such a manner that at one time a tube comes to a position lying betweenthe two stops and then the stop It isv-drawn awayso that the tube has the opportunity to roll down alon the guides 11 in the bent ower ends of whic it comes to rest. The movement of the chain is so adjusted that I the carrier 9 takes u the tube lying at the 14 is so regulated that no tube lies at the lower end of the guides 11 when the carrier 10 passes this end. As shown in the drawings,

- the carrier 10 is provided with a fin er 11,

weighing device 1 has mounted thereon a lever having a length such that the carrie when assing the supports 25, lifts the tube thereom and carrles it over the sprocket gears 5 and to a sortin mechanism. Y

the'rod on the arms 25 and the taking up of the said rod from these arms is utilized-forweighing the rod. For this purpose the 54 which can oscillate on a fulcrum 26 and which at one end carries a counter weight 27. The lever bears on a pin 28 which is vertically movable in. brackets 29.and is depressed by the lever 54 on its downward swin 'ng to engage one end of a lever 30. This ever 30 is adapted to oscillate'on a pivot 34 secured to a support 35 and at its other end it bears upwardly against a spring 31. The lever 30 is provided with a toothed segment 32 which when turning actuates a sector 33 to which is rigidly secured a needle 37 and is mounted on a pivot 36. When a lass rod has been laid on the arms 25 of the ever ,54 the mechanism described will impart a certain angular displacement to the lever 30 and consequently also to the pointer 37- In order to insure in this case, a rapid adjustment, it is advantageous to damp the movement of the lever 30,

which may be efiected by an suitable means.

- When the weighing device has adjusted itself definitely to a determined load, the

t 'I pointer37 is forced by '9. lug 39 against a contact roller 38 whereupon an electric circuit is closed which energizes the related one of the magnets 55 of the sorting-device, the needle 37 bei mounted for this 'purpose so as to be insu ated from the roller.

The lug 39 forms part of an an 1e lever 42 (Figure 1) which 1s mounted or rocking movement on a bracket 44 secured to the weighing device and which at one of its ends has secured to it a spring 41. The bellicrank is rovided with an armature 43 opposite WhlCll an electro-magnetis arranged. The roller 38 is rotatably mounted by means of su ports 45.and is rovided at its surface with he cal contact strlps 47 (see Figure 3) which are electrically connected to contact rings 48 at both ends of theroller, contacts 49 bein in-contact with these rings. On the shaft 0 the roller is also mounted a hand crank 50 which permits the roller to be rotated through a defimte angle owing to which the contact strips are en'abl tacts 49 are secured'to a rod 59 secured to the weighing device and are each electrically connected to a respective'magnet of the sorting device. The sorting device illustrated com- .prises only three magnets 55, each of which when excited actuates a lever 56, 57 or 58, said leversbeing so arranged that they can be brought into and out of the path of the glass r0 s applied by the carriers. The result 1s that when one of the magnets is, ener ed, the correspondin lever is actuated to li the lass rod out of t e carrier 10 and deposit it in the respective one of the receiving devices '51, 52 or 53. TheeIect'ric current required The space 0 time betwen the lodging of control the supply of current traversing the magnetsof the sorting device whereas the contact disks 61 andthe contacts '64 control the su ply of current to the magnet 40 which perio ically actuates the bell crank 42 and the lug 39. The contact disks and the contacts 63 are arranged in such a manner that the current is not closed until the needle 37 has been forced by the lug 39 against the contact roller 38.

1 In Figure 5, a circuit diagram is shown in which the cams and the contacts are indicated with the connections with the magnet 40 and the needle 37 and contact strips 47.

During use of the machine, tubes 12 having the same length and the same external diameter are supplied. One by.-one these rods are laid-by the carriers 9 on the supports 25, submitted to weighing and then lifted by the ing the weighing the needle 37 assumes a definite position and when no longer oscilatting it will be pressed by the lug 39 against the contact roller 38. The circuit is then closed through that one of the magnets 55 which is in circuit with one of the contact strips 47, which results in one of the levers 56, 57- or 58 being brought into the path of the glass tubes supplied by the carriers 10. Thetube is lifted from these carriers by that lever which has been adjusted to active position and rolls by gravity into the respective one of the receivers 51, 52 or 53. As the tubes 12 have the same length and the same external diameter, their difference in weight will indicialte the difierence in thickness of their wa s. c

I ed to occupy difl'erent positrons with relation to the needle 37. The con- What we claim is:

1. A device for sorting articles of different ber with said contacts.

2. A device for sorting articles of different.

weight, comprising a conveyor for the articles, a weighing device and a number of sorting units operatively arranged along the path of said conveyor, a contact member on said weighing device adapted to follow the deflection thereof, a number of contacts each corresponding to one of said sorting units cooperating with said member, a plurality of members movable into the path of the articles on said conveyor and each associated with a'particular unit, and means to energize said units, each of which, when energized, moves the particular member associated therewith into the path of the articles on said conveyor.

3. A device for sorting articles of difl'erent weight, comprising a conveyor for the articles, a weighing device and a number of sorting units operatively arranged along the path of said conveyor, a contact member on said weighing device adapted to follow the deflection thereof, a number of movable contacts, each corresponding to one of said sorting units, means for moving the contacts into or out of the path of said member, and means for selectively energizing the sorting units, according to the co-operation between satmember and said contacts.

- A device for sorting articles of different weight, comprising a conveyor for the articles, a weighing device and a number of electrically operated sorting units, all arranged along the path of said conveyor,'a contact member on said weighing device adapted to follow the deflection thereof, a number of contacts each corresponding to one of said units and adapted to co-operate with said member, and means for energizing said units.

5. A device for sorting articles of different weight, comprising a conveyor for the articles, a weighing device and a number of magnets operatively arranged along the path of said conveyor, a. plurality of members, each associated with one of said magnets and each movable into the path of the articles on said conveyor when the corresponding magnet is energized, a contact member on said weighing device adapted to follow the deflection thereof, a number of contacts, each corresponding to one of said magnets and adapted to co-operate with said member, and means for energizing said magnets.

' 6. A device for sorting articles of diflerent weight, comprising a conveyor forthe articles, a weighing device and a number of sorting units operatively arranged along the.

path of said conveyor, a needle on said weighmg device adapted to follow the deflection thereof, a number of contacts, each related to one of said sorting units andarranged in the path of said needle, means for ressing said needle against said contacts, and a source of energy for energizing said units.

7. A device for sorting articles of different weight, comprisin a conveying device for the articles, a w'eig in device and a number of electrically operate sorting units, all being arranged along the path of said conveyor,

a needle following the movements of said weighing device and a roller on which contact strips are helically arranged, said roller be ing adapted to turn about its axis, means for pressing said needle against said roller, and means or energizing said units.

8. A combination as specified in claim 4,

interrupting the current re uired for the energizmg of said sorting units, said device energizing said units after said weighing device has stopped moving and said member has been brought into contact with said contacts.

9. A device for sorting glass rods or tubes having a device for periodically closing and of diflerent weight, comprising a conveyor for the rods or tubes, a weighing device and a sorting device operatively arranged along the path of. said conveyor, a mechanism adapted to adjust said sorting device according to the different deflections of said weighing device, carriers provided on said conveyor for holding therods or tubes and 'to move the same first along the weighing device and then along the sorting device.

10'. A device for sorting glass tubes or rods of diflerent weight, a conveyor for the tubes or rods, carriers on said conveyor, counterweights for keeping the carriers in a determined position relative to the vertical, a

weighing device and a sorting device operatively arranged along the path of said conveyor, and means for adjusting said sorting device, according to the different deflections of said weighin device.

11. A device or sorting articles of different weight, comprising a conveyor for the articles, a weighing-device and a number of sorting units operatively arranged along the path of said conve or, a contact member on said weighing device adapted to follow the deflection thereof, a number of contacts each corresponding to one of said sorting units and co-operating with said member, and means for energizing said units after said member has co-operated with said contacts.

12. .In a sorting apparatus, the combination (if weighing mechanism; a vertical series of compartments to receive articles of difierent definite weights feeding mechanism adjacent the inlets of the compartments;

means associated with each compartment for deflecting a weighed article thereinto from the feeding mechanism; means controlled by the action ofthe weighing mechanism for moving into operative position the deflecting means of the compartment corresponding to the weight of the article being weighed and mechanism for delivering the weighed arti-- cle from the weighing mechanism to the feeding mechanism. I

In testimony whereof we afiix our signatures, at the city of Eindhoven, this 9th day of October, A. D; 1926.

PANCRAS SCHOONENBERG. JAN JESAYAS HARDENBERG. 

